Yay, it's April Meeting time! This is the biggest conference for the high-energy physics community in the US.

Resources and Lingo

• A high level summary of the meeting can be found here: https://www.aps.org/meetings/april/upload/AP18Program.pdf
• You can download an app from the app store to make a schedule, etc.: https://www.aps.org/meetings/mobileapp.cfm
• Plenaries
  • The "plenaries" happen in the morning
  • they are usually in the big conference hall, and are meant for everyone
• Scientific Sessions
  • The scientific sessions happen in the later morning and throughout the afternoon.
  • You pick and choose what session you attend, or even what talks you attend within a session.
  • It's completely normal to change rooms after each session concludes, and you are even welcome to jump between sessions to catch specific talks.

Sessions of Interest

• What sessions should I attend?
  • If you're totally clueless as to what would be interesting for our science, I'd recommend anything pertaining to "neutrinos", "cosmic rays", or "dark matter".
  • Some I'd recommend in particular:
    • Saturday 3:30: High energy particle astrophysics: http://meetings.aps.org/Meeting/APR18/Session/D07
    • Monday 10:40: Detection and origin of high energy astrophysical neutrinos: http://meetings.aps.org/Meeting/APR18/Session/R17
    • Monday 1:30: Neutrinos, Gamma rays, and cosmic rays oh my!: http://meetings.aps.org/Meeting/APR18/Session/S17
    • Monday 3:30 (our session!): Ultra-high energy neutrinos: http://meetings.aps.org/Meeting/APR18/Session/U17
• Go to activities and socials in the evening or during lunch. Some ones of note:
  • For everyone:
    • Sunday 6:30-7:30PM: Improving the climate for LGBT physicists roundtable: http://meetings.aps.org/Meeting/APR18/Session/N21.1
    • Sunday 6:30-7PM: National Society for Black and Hispanic Physicicst (NSBP, NSHP) Reception: http://meetings.aps.org/Meeting/APR18/Session/N20
    • Sunday 7-8:30PM: Education and Diversity Reception: http://meetings.aps.org/Meeting/APR18/Session/N22
  • For the undergrads specficially:
    • Saturday 12-1:30, round table with grad students: http://meetings.aps.org/Meeting/APR18/Session/B20
    • Sunday: 10-2: career workshop and preparing for work outside the academy: http://meetings.aps.org/Meeting/APR18/Session/G20, http://meetings.aps.org/Meeting/APR18/Session/J20
• Go to talks which are more than typical "science" talks. For example:
  • Monday: History of Women Pioneers in Astronomy: http://meetings.aps.org/Meeting/APR18/Session/U07
  • Monday: Physicsts and Human Rights: http://meetings.aps.org/Meeting/APR18/Session/R07
• You might avoid some of the more "eclectic" sessions:
  • Tuesday: "New Directions in Gravitation I and II " : http://meetings.aps.org/Meeting/APR18/Session/X13  , http://meetings.aps.org/Meeting/APR18/Session/Y13

Making the Most of the Conference

• Taking Care of Yourself
  • No one can actually stay focused from 8AM-6PM listening to science talks. It is is expected that you'll skip a session here, or miss a talk there.
  • Break the monotony. Get coffee, walk a lap of the convention hall, talk to people at exhibition booths instead of going to science talks.
• Networking
  • It really means just meet new people. That's it. Here's the easiet, foolproof way to do it: "Hi, I'm Brian Clark from OSU. I really liked your talk. Can I ask you a quick question about xxxx..." and go from there.
  • It's very easy to meet new people at receptions. I found dinner buddies, for example, at the LGBT roundtable and the Education and Diversity reception. Then you can chat with them for the coming days, add them on linked in, etc.
  • Also, OSU will have a large contingent. If you're hanging out in this large OSU group (grabbing dinner or coffee or lunch), and see someone you've chatted with before who you know could use a buddy, invite them to join.
• Courtesy
  • Do not ask questions during a talk; wait till the end. The speaker has 10 minutes to speak with 2 minutes reserved at the end for questions. Wait till the end to ask questions.
  • Don't heckle a speaker, even if you disagree with them a lot or they insult your experiment/paper/idea. It's unprofessional and makes you look bad.
  • Try to actually listen to talks; minimize laptop use. You'll see lots of people with their laptops open, working during talks. This is normal, and there's nothing really wrong with it. But try, as best you can, to actually pay attention to the talks. If you're going to spend the whole session not listening to the speaker at all, then go grab a table in the convention hall lobby instead. You'll be more productive and the speaker will have a more engaged audience.
• Professional Behavior
  • Read and abide by the code of conduct: https://www.aps.org/meetings/policies/code-conduct.cfm. 
    • We should always strive to be collegial: no crude jokes, no behaviors that make the meeting unsafe or unwelcoming for anyone (based on nationality, disability, gender, sexuality, etc.).
    • Anything we do reflects badly on ourselves, the Connolly Group, OSU, Columbus, and the US (this is an international conference). And physicists have very long memories.
  • For those old enough to drink, drink responsibly.
    • There will be alcohol available at some receptions, and networking after the conference can often happen at bars.
    • We never have an excuse to be excessively intoxicated and do something which makes the meeting unsafe or unwelcoming for ourselves or others.
    • Remember, as a representative of OSU at this conference, we are still held to the OSU Code of Conduct even though the event is off campus.